Today I woke up early to ride Sals before work with Weldon, after getting only 2.5 hours of sleep. For some reason I couldn't sleep last night, so I cleaned the Caffiene and did some maintentance on my little wheel bike (Rush). I found that the seatpost was cracked right where the binder bolt is - damn carbon posts, or damn me for probably tightening it too much.
So I'm considering taking the Rush to French Creek this weekend, wondering if the suspension is a better choice than the hardtail there. So to make sure everything is all good with the bike I rode Sals, I could definately feel the difference IMMEDIATELY in the wheel size. I felt a lot closer to the ground and the bike just felt twitchy, I guess I just got used to the slower steering 29'er. I still really like the 29'er just want a little suspension.
The bike definately didn't flow the same through rock gardens, but I was appreciating the rear suspension all over again. I find myself getting fatigued on longer rides, mainly lower back area on the hardtail. So now this has me thinking of selling the Rush and maybe the Caffiene and picking up a Niner Jet9, I'm just having a hard time with the retail only pricing. I hate paying retail.
Now I'm really tired though, 2.5 hours of sleep, 1.5 hour Sals ride at 6:15am and work (well sit here) from 9am-9pm. Makes for a long day!
Thats all for now, I'll update if the bikes are getting sold and a FS 29'er is in the works.
-matt
So I'm considering taking the Rush to French Creek this weekend, wondering if the suspension is a better choice than the hardtail there. So to make sure everything is all good with the bike I rode Sals, I could definately feel the difference IMMEDIATELY in the wheel size. I felt a lot closer to the ground and the bike just felt twitchy, I guess I just got used to the slower steering 29'er. I still really like the 29'er just want a little suspension.
The bike definately didn't flow the same through rock gardens, but I was appreciating the rear suspension all over again. I find myself getting fatigued on longer rides, mainly lower back area on the hardtail. So now this has me thinking of selling the Rush and maybe the Caffiene and picking up a Niner Jet9, I'm just having a hard time with the retail only pricing. I hate paying retail.
Now I'm really tired though, 2.5 hours of sleep, 1.5 hour Sals ride at 6:15am and work (well sit here) from 9am-9pm. Makes for a long day!
Thats all for now, I'll update if the bikes are getting sold and a FS 29'er is in the works.
-matt
3 comments:
If you rode for SVB we carry Titus.... just sayin'
I'm in the middle on this one. I also still have my old Rush (thou it's under an inch of dust) but I've not rode it in close to a year now.
When I was going back and forth with it and my old (26er) hardtail the only thing I liked the Rush better for was rocky climbing. The rear shock keeps that rear tire glued to the dirt.
With the larger (lower pressure running) tires on the 29er I hardly even notice the difference. Something else too...once I changed to the ligter wheel set the steering had a HUGE change...much more reactive.
And on the lower back thing. I was in the same boat till I started doing core work over the winter. Abs, oblique and lower back work are HUGE in cycling. Have not had a problem yet..even the in couple 12 hours earlier this year.
yo matt....
i have all three of the bikes your considering. here's my opinion.
1. carbon rush.....not bad but cannondale needs to do some catching up regarding lateral stiffness in the rear. geometery though is supurb. the bike is condition dependent and your sacrificing a lot with the sluggish squish no matter how you set it.
2. caffeine 29...or any other hardtail. no dead spots in accelleration, better for out of saddle climbing , no sluggish feel. ideal for xc racing no matter the conditions. downfall....your body knows your on a hardtail. i just rode mine in the cat classic and got beat up pretty good. caveat to that.... it was because of the 80 mm up front rather than the hardtail in the back. the ideal situation would be to toss the new 135 lefty on there. now you're officially bad ass.
3. fs 29er. i also have a 29er titus racer x, full squish at 25 pounds with pedals. yeah, its blinged out and built from scratch. for racing.....no way. the titus is incredibally stiff in the rear but its still sluggish compared to a hartail. don't get me wrong, i love the bike. but it serves a purpose and its not for racing.
as for this weekend...that's a no brainer. your caffeine. french creek is hardly technical. if anyone says otherwise, quickly remind them of the 1 mile paved road you have to climb. that's as far from technical as it comes. even the single track would barely be considered gnar gnar. that course is the reason a hardtail was made. i would be more concerned about riding big or small wheels. because of the 2-3 moderate climbs it might be better to run a 26" wheel for accelleration concerns. a full squish niner on that course would be a huge anchor....realtively speaking of course.
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